Brad Rodu, Tobacco Truth

The American Cancer Society’s new position statement offering a “bold new framework” for eliminating combustible tobacco use in the U.S. (here) contains a demonstrably invalid statement: “Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of cancer mortality in the United States (1), accounting for as much as 98% of alltobacco-related deaths (2) [emphasis added].

The problem with the highlighted phrase is that no estimate of “all tobacco-related deaths” in the U.S. has ever been produced by the government, academia or health organizations. The percentage of deaths attributable to smoking, while undoubtedly large, is simply not known.

Mawsley, Planet Of The Vapes

The Global Forum for Nicotine (GFN) took place in Poland and concluded last Saturday. Many harm reduction specialists attended but, again, the major opponents to vaping stayed away and refused to engage. A combination of presentations, debates, posters and satellite meetings all had the aim of asking questions and seeking answers.

Typically, one line of attack from opponents to vaping is that there is industry involvement from tobacco companies. GFN states: “The conference is funded by registration fees and does not receive any sponsorship from manufacturers, distributors or retailers of nicotine products including pharmaceutical, electronic cigarette and tobacco companies.”

Steve Birr, The Daily Vaper

The adult smoking rate in the U.S. is resting at an all-time low, dropping significantly since 2016, and vaping is likely playing a critical role.

Data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Tuesday reveals after holding steady for several years, the smoking rate fell from nearly 16 percent of adults in 2016 to 13.9 percent in 2017. While the health gains are largely being attributed to years of successful public service campaigns warning of the dangers of smoking, credit is also being given to harm reduction technologies such as electronic cigarettes, reports the Associated Press.

We have little understanding of how vapers use e-cigarettes beyond cessation. E-cigarettes may have a role to play in reducing the health-related harms of tobacco smoking, through not only assisting smoking cessation attempts but also supporting long-term abstinence from smoking. However, there are fears that vaping may lead to the ‘renormalisation’ of smoking type behaviours. This study aimed to explore patterns of use and reported experiences of vapers quitting smoking using an e-cigarette in relation to long-term smoking status (abstinence or relapse).

Dr. Joe, Dr. Joe Today

It is interesting to apply current thinking to decisions taken years ago. Whilst our greater knowledge today can make previous behaviours and thinking seem odd or plain wrong, there are also instances when applying todays approach would have stopped progress.

In the 1960’s it became apparent that seatbelts reduced harm from use of motor vehicles. Whilst the vast majority of users, got from A to B safely, there were (and still are) vehicle collisions causing death or serious injury.

Wearing seatbelts was not subjected to randomised double blind placebo trials. It was not felt that use of a seatbelt required a doctor’s prescription. Use of seatbelts did not make using vehicles harm free. We did not know if there may be long term harms from use.

Dick Puddlecote

Life is still overwhelmingly busy at Puddlecote Inc hence the lack of content here of late, plus I’ve just got back from Poland after another interesting GFN conference. There is lots to write, but sadly not much time to write it.

For now, your humble host would invite you to read this article at Reason which neatly highlights some textbook tobacco control fraud.

Three days after more than two-thirds of San Francisco voters agreed that mandating flavorless e-liquid was a reasonable response to the rising popularity of e-cigarettes among teenagers, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published survey data showing that in 2017 vaping declined among middle school students and remained steady among high school students after falling in 2016. E-cigarette alarmists were so flummoxed by reality’s failure to fit their narrative that they insisted the survey must be wrong. “Study Says Vaping by Kids Isn’t Up,” read the Associated Press headline, “but Some Are Skeptical.”

Colin Mendelsohn, Alex Wodak

GPs may be asked by their patients for advice on vaping and therefore need to be informed with the latest evidence. GPs may also wish to recommend personal vaporisers to patients unable or unwilling to quit smoking with conventional therapies. This article provides evidence-based answers to 10 of the most frequently asked questions about vaping with the aim of providing GPs with the information they need to con dently discuss the subject with their patients who smoke.

Christopher Snowden, Velvet Glove, Iron Fist

The Scottish government has just published the latest part of its plan to achieve tobacco prohibition ‘a tobacco-free generation’ by 2034. This target was set behind closed doors by politicians and state-funded pressure groups several years ago and attracted little public attention at the time. As the date gets closer, the government was always bound to resort to increasingly absurd and authoritarian measures.

And so it has proved. Since scraping the bottom of the barrel with plain packaging, the tobacco control racket has struggled to come up with any new ideas, but since ASH Scotland has to justify the hundreds of thousands of pounds it gets from Scottish taxpayers somehow, they’ve put their thinking caps on and these are some of its brain-farts that are now government policy…

Mawsley, Planet Of The Vapes

Hopes were high for evidence-based policy from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) when Scott Gottlieb MD to on the top job. He had spoken out in favour of harm reduction and the mood music was distinctly positive. Now, with states facing a massive financial black hole due to falling tobacco revenues, he appears to be replacing science with fantasy.

Kevin Crowley, Vaping Links And More

The reason for intent (objective, goal) is to have desired results from an action. The reason for which something is done is considered purpose.

For you who say “for all intensive purposes”, stop doing that. Although, in this instance (for your entertainment and mine), there may be are short-sighted “intensive” purposes for the head of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to act they way he does.

Immanuel Jotham, International Business Times

Vaping can help smokers quit, even hardened smokers who need it, even if they do not want to stop smoking. Also, smokers who make the switch might even be better off in the long term and not relapse when they start vaping instead.

A new study conducted by the University of East Anglia (UEA) found that people who switched from cigarettes to vape pens actually found it more enjoyable and this is one of the reasons why it can effectively replace smoking. Lead researcher Dr Caitlin Notley of the UEA, on the habit of vaping, or using electronic cigarettes said that they, “are at least 95 per cent less harmful than tobacco smoking, and they are now the most popular aid to quitting smoking in the UK.

Pitchbook

E-cigarette company Juul has conducted a secondary sale of its shares at a valuation of more than $10 billion, per The Information. The company, which spun out of PAX Labs last year, makes electronic cigarettes known for their minimalist design and nicotine strength.

A look back at how things have moved on or otherwise….

Diane Caruana, Vaping Post

In a statement announcing the significant reduction in smoking by U.S. high school students, the new FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb, made no reference to the role vaping products may have played in all this.

The good news is, that the announcement points out that smoking has been reduced by half since 2011, from 15.8 percent to 8.0 percent, in what an article on the RStreet website has called “a remarkable and previously unanticipated public health victory.”

The not so positive part, is that although reliable studies from all corners of the world keep emerging and attributing the decrease in smoking patterns to non-pharmaceutical nicotine products such as electronic cigarettes and snus, there was no mention of this in the FDA statement.

Mawsley, Planet of the Vapes

It has become commonplace for mainstream American coverage of vaping to veer towards the sensationalistic and fear-driven. Tales abound of explosions and tots with juice bottles, but a video is being shared online that redresses the balance.

“Scott Gottlieb testified at his confirmation hearing,” states the voiceover as the image cuts to a sign outside the US Department of Health and Human Resources Food And Drug Administration. “Senators grilled him on a surprising new priority: e-cigarettes.”

“So-called ‘tobacco alternatives’ have become a multi-billion dollar industry over the last few years. The science on their safety is still out and the FDA is expected to implement strict regulations on them – that could kill off all but the biggest players in the business.”

While the FDA has put back the date to implement the deeming rule, it is yet to scrap it and, as highlighted by one store owner, the cost implications to the industry are out of all proportion to what is sensible or proper.